Knowing how to build a house is extremely helpful from several perspectives!  A house is typically the most expensive item we will purchase, and most go into significant debt to purchase their house.  It doesn't have to be that way or you can have much less debt if you build your house yourself.  If you choose to build your house yourself, you will save tons of money.  Most estimate that about 55% of the cost of a house is labor.

 

Second, you will have confidence it was done right without cutting corners.  Third, if you need to perform significant maintenance on the house or you want to change some significant part of the house (remodel or add an addition), you will know what is involved and will be able to make better judgments about how much work is involved, how best to do the work, and potential costs.

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This course will be given from the perspective of a person who successfully built their own house using the most common light wood framing material method.  I will provide a comprehensive step-by-step process of the major issues and tasks associated with building your own house.  The class will NOT be a detailed training course for carpenters or plumbers or electricians or masons, etc.  Rather, it will provide a higher-level view of the entire process - from selecting the property to the tasks involved in finishing the house.  You will learn important concepts about budgeting and cost management, foundations, building methods and carpentry concepts, electrical, plumbing, and heating-ventilation-air conditioning (HVAC).

 

This course is loaded with valuable tips from someone who successfully built their own 2,400 square foot, two-story house!

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Students will be expected to participate in the discussions we have, and to apply what they have learned.  There are no prerequisites required for this class…just a thirst for learning!  Homework is optional.  The lessons are designed for high school-aged students or middle school, but many adults would benefit from this course as well.  Classes are generally structured for up to 15 students in six, one-hour lessons delivered using Zoom, an online meeting application.  Click here to go to the page where you can find out how to enroll in this course.

 

For more information on how the course and classes are run or answers to other questions, please see our FAQ page.

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This is a six-week class held once a week for one hour per week for a total of six hours of instruction.

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For a full description of this course, please click the Full Course Syllabus to view or download that PDF document.

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